Apparatus for effecting the removal of foreign bodies from carded webs



2,997,748 EIGN R. O. INGRAM APPARATUS FOR EFFECTING THE REMOVAL OF FOR Aug. 29, 1961 BODIES FROM CARDED WEBS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 1, 1956 INVENTOR. FPa/ph 0- fag/am ATTORNEYS.

Aug. 29, 1961 R [NGRAM 2,997,748

APPARATUS FOR EFFECTING THE REMOVAL OF FOREIGN BODIES FROM CARDED WEBS Filed 001. l, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 /7 P1 fi'|..

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ATTORN YS- 2,997 748 APPARATUS FOR EFFEC'IING THE REMOVAL OF FOREIGN BODIES FROM CARDED WEBS Ralph 0. Ingram, Rumford, R.I., assignor to Kings Lea Corporation, a corporation of Rhode Island Filed Oct. 1, 1956, Ser. No. 613,170 3 Claims. (Cl. 19-98) This invention relates to improvement in an apparatus for effecting the removal of foreign bodies from carded worsted webs.

Carding worsted yarns, though not precisely the same as in woolen yarn production, is similar in principle, and the worsted carding differs from woolen carding chiefly in the character of the product rather than in mechanical differences of the carding machinery. In worsted yarns the fibers are longer and more uniform in length and free of curly fibers. Wool as prepared for the carding opera tion is not totally free of foreign bodies composed of various substances, such as burrs, vegetable particles, and residues of other foreign matter.

An apparatus known as the Peralta machine which is illustrated and described in Patent No. 2,075,156, issued March 30, 1937, has been found eflicient and practical for removing the above said foreign matter from the fibers in the carding of woolen yarn production. The apparatus is in general use and comprises essentially two driven cylinders, between the nip of which the webs of carded wool pass to be subjected to rolling under great pressures, which causes the said foreign matter to be crushed into dust, which may then be more easily separated from the wool fibers.

The above machine has been installed on worsted cards and performed well for removing foreign matter from the wool fibers, but the percentage of noils increased over the prior systems of removing said foreign matter to such a degree as to make the use of the Peralta machine in worsted carding inefi'icient. Some of the most important worsted mills in this country, England, and Europe have experimented with the above machine with the same results. Noils are wool fibers too short to be used for worsted yarns, and the increase of noils is the result of severing fibers as passed between the crushing cylinders. It is generally believed that the severing of the fibers causing this increase in noils was due to the heavy pressures applied to the crushing cylinders.

Heretofore it has been the common practice to rotate the rolls of the Peralta apparatus one from the other through spur gears and rotate one of the rolls from the mechanism of the associated carding engine, usually by means of a belt trained over a pulley attached to one of the crushing cylinders of the said apparatus and a pulley attached to some conveniently positioned rotating shaft of the carding machine.

I have found that, different from the general belief, the heavy pressures applied to the crushing cylinder do not necessarily sever fibers, and accordingly I have proceeded on the theory that the increase in noils is caused by a scuffing action on the fibers. I believe the scufiing action is caused to a great degree by slippage between the various drive connections of the card mechanism which is transmitted to the crushing cylinders and to backlash of the gear train for driving the said cylinders one from the other.

The velocity of the rotational elements of the carding engine during operation is not constant and varies under load. There is a lag in the drive connection to the crushing cylinders such as a slippage between the belt and pulleys to a degree to cause a sufiicient difference in surface speed between said cylinders to cause the said scuffing action.

An object of the inveniton is to improve generally on nited States Patent 2,997,748 Patented Aug. 29, 1961 the above apparatus in a manner to make the same adaptable for use in preparing worsted yarn.

Another object of this invention is to provide a drive for the above apparatus in a manner such as to assure rotation of said crushing cylinders at equal surface velocity.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a drive for the said crushing cylinders which will operate to eliminate any lag in transmitting torque one from the other.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists of certain novel features of construction as will be more fully described and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

FIGURE 1 is an end elevational view of an apparatus embodying my invention for separating and removing foreign matter from fibers, shown associated with a section of a worsted card engine shown diagrammatically;

FIGURE 2 is an end elevational view of the apparatus of FIGURE 1 without the card engine but shown in greater detail and drawn to a larger scale;

FIGURE 3 is a side elevational view of the apparatus looking at the same in the direction of the arrows on line 33 of FIGURE 2 with the feeding apron omitted;

FIGURE 4 is a diagrammatic view of the principal operating parts of the apparatus; and

FIGURE 5 is diagrammatic view of a modified drive.

A worsted card engine of the type shown at 10 in FIG- URE 1 is well known. The card engine may have an endless conveyor 11 on which the fibers to be acted upon are placed to be advanced to the card engine and passed between the bites of the various cylinders. The carded fleece is dotted from the card section shown, in a thin sheet or web 12. The apparatus 13 forming the subject of the present invention is advantageously positioned to receive the web 12 as it is delivered from the first doffer indicated generally 14. The web 12 is led to an apron conveyor 15 forming part of the apparatus 13 and is carried thereby to the nip of the crushing cylinders 16, 17 of the apparatus. The weight of the rolls supplemented by pressure applied at each end of the upper cylinder 17 through the springs 18 crushes to a fine dust all foreign matter entangled in the fibers of the web. The web 12 is led from the cylinders 16, 17 on to a conveyor 19 which carries the web to the next section 20 of the carding engine which operates on the web in the usual manner, the crushed foreign matter being eliminated from the web as it passes through the said section 20.

The general function of the apparatus 13 as above disclosed is well known and is illustrated and described in Patent No. 2,075,156 and it will be only necessary to describe the differences existing in the apparatus 13 from the patent to clearly set forth applicants invention.

The crushing cylinders 16 and 17 are made of hardened material, have smooth surfaces, and are accurately machined to minute tolerances. The cylinder 16 is journalled in bearings 25 which are mounted in a slide 26 provided in the end frames or standards 27' of the apparatus. The upper cylinder 17 is likewise journalled in bearings 27 which are slidably mounted in the said slide 26. Pressure is applied at each end of the cylinder 17 by means of the coil spring 18 having its lower end engaged against bearing 27. The upper end of the spring is provided with a cap 28 which is engaged by a screw threaded member 29 which functions to adjust the pressure of the spring force applied to the bearing 27. The threaded member 29 is arranged in the known manner to be manually turned by means of a worm wheel 30 which extends into engagement with a worm 31 carried by a rotatable shaft 32 having a hand wheel 33 at each end for convenience in turning the shaft 32 for adjusting the pressure of the springs 18. A rotatable cylinder 34 (see FIG- URE 4) having a smooth periphery is positioned in contact with the cylinder 17 and serves to detach from the periphery of cylinder 17 any residue or substance which adheres thereto after the rolling of the web. The cylinder 34 is driven by means of an endless belt 35 driven from a pulley wheel 36 attached to the shaft 17 of cylinder 17 for rotation therewith. An equivalent action is effected in respect of cylinder 16 by the conveyor 19 itself when it is disposed in contact with said cylinder 16. For effectively completing the separation of the said residue adhering to the cylinders 16 and 17, doctor blades 37 and 38 are provided and extend to adjacent the surfaces of cylinders 16 and 17, respectively, to scrape such substances which may adhere thereto and are not removed by the cylinder 34 and apron 19.

The conveyor 15 is actuated through a train of gears 39, 40, and 41. The conveyor 19 is similarly actuated by a train of gears 41, 42, and 43, gear wheel 41 being common to both of said train of gears, and is mounted on the shaft 16 of cylinder 16 for rotation therewith.

In one embodiment, the drive for cylinders 16 and 17 comprises a motor 45 (see FIGURE 3), on the shaft of which a pinion 46 drives gear wheel 47 mounted and secured to shaft '16. The pinion and gear wheel are made relatively wide and are provided with helical teeth (FIGURE 3) which are machined to very close tolerances. I drive the upper cylinder 17 through cylinder 16 by means of helical gears 48 and 49 which are secured to shafts 16, 17, respectively. These are made with wide faces to provide a large surface area contact. Their pitches coincide accurately with each other and with the diameter of the cylinders 16 and 17. Thus, torque will be transmitted through gear wheels to cylinders 16 and 17 with the least lag. Any variation in torque from motor 45 reflected in the velocity of cylinders will be of a negligible quantity. The gears 48, 49 are made of a substantial width so as to assure of continued engagement and reduce backlash to a minimum quantity. Thus, the gear wheels of the train of gears will be engaged with each other in a manner so as to reduce to a negligible quantity any tendency for differences in surface velocity between cylinders 16 and 17 upon any variation in torque delivered from motor 45. The motor 45 may be synchronized with a motor for driving the carding machine to effect uniform drive.

In FIGURE I have shown diagrammatically a modified drive for cylinders 16 and 17 which comprises driving each cylinder independently of the other by means of motors which are operatively connected electrically to be operated in synchronism. This may be accomplished in 4 known manner (not shown), the details of which form no part of the present invention. In this way the two rolls are electrically locked to rotate in unison.

From the above it will be apparent that in providing for the cylinders 16 and 17 a drive independent of the mechanism of the card engine associated therewith any variation of the velocity of the card engine mechanism will not be reflected in the drive of the cylinders 16 and 17. It will also be apparent that eliminating backlash in the drive for cylinders 16 and 17 to a negligible quantity will assure the said cylinders being revolved at equal surface velocity and thereby any tendency of scufiing on the fibers rolled between the nip of said cylinders.

I claim:

1. In combination with a worsted carding engine, an apparatus for removal of foreign bodies in webs which are produced on said carding engine, said apparatus being positioned at a location after the carding operation on said engine and having a pair of rotatable cylinders of hard material with smooth surfaces, a drive for efiecting a rotary movement to said cylinders to cause them to roll one on the other at equal surface velocity, means for receiving and advancing to the nip of said cylinders the said web from said engine, the rolling of said Web being effected under the pressure of one cylinder on the other to effect the crushing of foreign bodies mixed with the fibers when the web is passed between the nip of said cylinders, said drive comprising a rotary member secured to the shaft of one of said cylinders, a second rotary member secured to the shaft of the other of said cylinders, said members being interconnected to rotate said cylinders without backlash at equal surface velocity during any variation of torque transmitted to said cylinders, and means independent of the mechanism of the engine to energize one of said cylinders.

2. In combination as set forth in claim 1 wherein said members are a pair of helical gear wheels secured to the shafts of said cylinders.

3. In combination as set forth in claim 1 wherein said members are electrical motors connected to the shaft of said cylinders and said motors are connected electrically to be operated in synchronism.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,075,156 Albero Mar. 30, 1937 2,529,083 Keefe Nov. 7, 1950 2,576,281 Carr Nov. 27, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 882,651 France Mar. 8, 1943 

